A Look at Time Management

By Desiree Rivera

Prior to entering college many students do not truly understand the concept of time management. In fact, many students fail to realize the importance of being able to manage their time properly.  Time management is critical to a student's success and learning how to master this will prove to be beneficial throughout their life; especially once they begin careers. Possibly without even realizing it PTK members attending the NY Regional Conference had to use their time wisely to ensure that they were prepared and on time for sessions and workshops. The time management workshop was successful at conveying the importance of mastering this skill as it will always be relevant in our lives.

For many students trying to balance attending classes, studying, completing assignments, extracurricular activities, work, and finding free time seems almost impossible.  Although it is not easy and requires discipline, time management is about figuring out what works best for you.  It's important to keep track of the things that need to be accomplished and realistically plan how to get them done. Every aspect of one’s day is impacted by time management. Everything from ensuring you have enough time to get ready, to allowing adequate time to travel, and arriving to your destination in a timely manner. For students time management is especially important when it comes to meeting deadlines for assignments.  Larger assignments and projects take a while to complete and to ensure they are done efficiently you should work on them over time. This requires that you plan ahead and block out times to work on these assignments. 

As mentioned before, knowing what works best for you is the first step in exploring how you can obtain a better handle of managing your time. There are many tools and resources available to help you keep track of your calendar, tasks, assignments, and to plan how to get everything done. All smart phones, iPads, and tablets come equipped with a calendar that you can use to keep track of your class schedule, appointments, and extracurricular activities. There are even applications that you can download to help you to track your assignments so you can make sure you complete them in a timely manner. However, for some students writing things down helps them maintain a better handle on things. Invest in a planner or maybe even two so that you can keep your academic responsibilities separate from your personal life. Make "To Do" lists whether they outline what you need to accomplish daily or weekly. Finally, you can even use post it's to serve as reminders. Just be sure to place them somewhere that you look at often so that you do not miss anything. Timing is everything; especially for a student.